A CRICKETING talent show, based on the Pop Idol format, is set to launch in the UK next spring. Negotiations are under way to screen the series, which is aimed at discovering the next Andrew Flintoff or Steve Harmison, on terrestrial or satellite television. The former radio and TV presenter Chris Evans, a devoted cricket fan, will host the show.

The winner of Cricket Star will be granted a season’s contract with a first-class county of his choice in 2007, with the chance to play second- and first-team cricket, and the opportunity to work at the national academy in Loughborough. The salary he receives will be well above the average for uncapped county professionals. The organisers of the programme have already made presentations to executives at Five and Sky Sports.

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), like every national board, is keenly aware that the recruitment of talent is a highly unscientific process and a lot of gifted players slip through the net. The ECB has already given its support to the project, which can only get off the ground once a broadcaster is confirmed.

“We are interested in listening,” an ECB spokesman said. “Anything that might unearth talent has to be looked at.”

The backer of the scheme is a group called Investors in Cricket, a company that specialises in the creation and management of sports rights relevant to the Indian subcontinent and handles the commercial affairs of Leicestershire County Cricket Club.

Investors in Cricket has fostered initiatives to encourage local Asians to become involved in Leicestershire cricket. It hopes that the Cricket Star series will prove particularly attractive to British Asians.

A version of Cricket Star is already confirmed for India, where the project has the full support of the national board. Aspiring stars of the future can apply online or by post from next month. A nationwide application and screening process will lead to a shortlist of talented candidates being invited to attend auditions in one of several regional centres under the auspices of local cricket boards.

The players will be assessed by celebrity judges, including Kapil Dev, the former World Cup-winning captain, national selectors, past and present players and technical staff from the Indian cricket board. These experts will select the final group to attend the Cricket Star academy, along with the opinions of millions of TV viewers who will cast their votes by phone, online or text message.

The final group of about 20 cricketers will attend a talent academy for about 10 weeks. They will be subjected to a range of mental and physical tests, together with a series of cricket challenges. Their progress will be tested each week through televised matches against state XIs, India’s Under-19s and celebrity XIs.

The Indian talent academy will open in late November, with a winner declared in February. The winner of the first series will earn a place at the national trials and a year’s expenses-paid contract with Leicestershire in 2007.

Galvanised by the examples of Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Munaf Patel, who hail from obscure regions of the country, the Indian board has come to realise that huge resources of untapped cricketing talent lie unused outside the main cities. It has lent the Cricket Star scheme its support in the hope that it will encourage rural sportsmen to put themselves forward.

“This exciting project supports our aim of unearthing and developing talent to produce the future stars of the game,” said Lalit Modi, the board’s vice-president.